Understanding the Behavior of Imported Application Packages

After an import, packages are automatically associated with their application inventory item in the destination App Volumes Manager, similar to how they are related in the source App Volumes Manager.

If the application does not exist while importing, App Volumes Manager creates an application using the application properties. Then, App Volumes Manager associates the package to the new application inventory item.

After an import, applications and packages are listed in the Inventory tab of the App Volumes Manager admin UI.

Note: Imported packages follow the behavior described in this section only when they have been created or updated by App Volumes Manager 4, version 2012 or later. Any packages created before App Volumes Manager 4, version 2012, have a different import behavior even when imported to a later version. For optimal import functionality, ensure all App Volumes Manager servers are upgraded to App Volumes Manager 4, version 2012 before performing import actions. For information about upgrading, see App Volumes 4 Installation Guide.

App Volumes Manager performs the following functions to ensure that the package gets associated to the correct application:

• Any update to the package properties such as package description or package stage is applied to all storage locations of the package.

  Such an update ensures that when a package is imported, the package remains associated to the correct application.

• Any update to the application properties such as application name and description is applied to all packages of the application including to all package locations within the same App Volumes Manager instance.

• If the same package is copied to multiple storage locations, on an import, the source App Volumes Manager instance detects the package, including all its duplicates and imports them to the target App Volumes Manager instance.

• Application owner information is applied to the package on import.

Note: App Volumes Manager does not import an application's assignments and the assignment type, Marker.

If an application package is marked as CURRENT, though the package is imported, the package does not have the CURRENT marker after the import.

Considerations when importing a MSI-wrapped VHD package

For information about an MSI-wrapped VHD package, see Using MSI-Wrapped VHD Package for App Volumes Delivery.

• If an MSI-wrapped VHD package generated using the App Volumes Application Capture Command-Line program is imported to App Volumes Manager and the corresponding VHD package already exists, then the imported package gets associated with the existing VHD package. The format of the existing package becomes VHD + MSI.

  Note: To ensure that a VHD + MSI format is successfully obtained after import:

  • Ensure that you use the capture command-line program, version 2509 and later only. If you already have an existing MSI-wrapped VHD package, then you must regenerate the package from the existing VHD and only then import to App Volumes Manager.

  • When importing to App Volumes Manager, it is mandatory to copy the .json file with the .msi (if applicable, .cab also) to the storage location.

  • If a new VHD package with the corresponding .msi, .cab, and .json files is imported, then the format becomes VHD + MSI after a successful import.

  • At the time of import, if either the .msi or .cab is missing, then the imported package is considered as VHD only.

• After the .vhd, .msi, and .cab files are successfully imported to App Volumes Manager, if any of the files go missing, then a Missing <name_of_fileformat> status is displayed at the shared storage location for the corresponding file when a rescan is triggered. For example: Missing VHD, Missing MSI, and Missing VHD + MSI.

• Importing only the .msi or .cab to App Volumes Manager is not allowed. It is mandatory to have a corresponding VHD package in App Volumes Manager or the corresponding.vhd must also be present with the imported files.